Listen to Your Heart
by Yummy Marshmallows
Summary: Ever since childhood, Syaoran always seemed to take everything that belonged to his twin brother Seichi. Now that Seichi found something special, will Syaoran be so heartless as to deprive him of that also?
1. Chapter 1

Walking out from her first period class, Sakura noticed a certain chestnut-haired boy who was at his locker. She blushed as she saw him. Of course, he didn't notice she was staring at him. She planned to walk over and say 'Hi', but someone beat her to it.

"Hey, can I borrow your History textbook? Left mine's at home," the boy said to his brother. Seichi looked up at his identical twin and said, "Sorry man, I have History next."

"Oh well, I'll just ask some of the girls. They'd be happy to lend me their book," Syaoran smiled with confidence, and that's when he noticed that a certain auburn-haired girl was looking at his direction. Seeing that Syaoran was looking her way, she quickly turned around and walked away. Syaoran smirked to himself.

**x-x-x**

_**2nd Period…**_

History, Sakura's favorite subject. Not that she liked History class itself, but her favorite person was in it, Seichi. And he sat right beside her! History was like heaven. She greeted her friends as she walked by them.

"Tomoyo!" Sakura exclaimed cheerfully and gave her best friend a big hug.

"Hi Sakura, guess what?" Tomoyo asked eagerly. "Eriol asked me out during first period today!" She didn't give Sakura time to respond. Her amethyst eyes glittered as a small blush was plastered on her face. Feeling happy for her friend, Sakura hugged her again and right when she did that, Seichi walked into the classroom. He smiled as he saw Sakura.

"She's always so cheerful," he thought. He walked to his seat and said his hellos to Sakura and Tomoyo. Sakura smiled and said a small 'Hi' as her cheeks turned a soft pink.

**x-x-x**

_**Lunchtime…** (Yes! Lunch! Lol)_

They had pasta for lunch today. Yummy. She got herself a plate, and as she was about to pour some cheese on her pasta, someone spoke in her ear.

"I saw you staring at me today," he whispered. "I know you like me."

The cap for the bottle of cheese was missing, but Sakura did not nice it because she was shocked by what Syaoran said. Now, a large mount of cheese covered her pasta. Sakura's face immediately turned red as Syaoran laughed his head off. The angry Sakura walked off leaving a laughing Syaoran behind.

**x-x-x**

_**5th period Biology…**_

Biology was another one of Sakura's favorite class. Her emerald eyes glistened as she walked to her class. She was so excited that she completely forgot about her embarrassing moment at lunch.

They were working on a lab project. Sakura was delighted that Seichi was her lab partner. She was so distracted by looking at Seichi that she accidentally knocked down a tube of acidic chemical.

"Broken glass, nobody move," the teacher said as he walked over with a broom.

"Sakura, are you OK?" Seichi asked as he took hold of Sakura's hand, causing her to blush. "Please be more careful, I don't want you getting hurt."

"Seichi, there's something I've been meaning to tell you…" Sakura hesitated and looked at her feet, her stomach fluttering with butterflies.

"There's something I've been meaning to tell you too. I like you, Sakura."

Sakura was shocked at what she just heard and as she looked up at Seichi's sincere eyes, she knew he had meant what he said. He put a finger underneath her chin, drawing her closer to him. The chattering in the class and the teacher telling the students to be more careful ceased. All Sakura heard was the thumping of her heartbeat as he drew closer… and closer… and closer…

BOOM! Sakura jumped up out of her seat fully awake as the teacher dropped a textbook on her table. Everyone in the class laughed.

"Ms. Kinomoto, you come here to learn, not to sleep in class," Mr. Wakashima said. "Detention today after school." With that, he walked back to the front of the room, taking the huge textbook along with him.

Sakura sighed as she sat back down. "It was only a dream," she thought. "Too bad it ended too soon."

Unknown to her, in the back of the room Seichi frowned as he heard that she was going to serve detention. His twin, on the other hand  
smiled mischievously.

* * *

**Author's Note: Hello everyone. This is my newest fanfic. I haven't written anything in about a year. XD Changed my pen name from Lil Blue Burdie to Yummy Marshmallows. I got the idea for the story from my best friend. :) I tried to make it as interesting as possible. I hope you guys didn't think it was boring. Too bad it's not as long as I wanted it to be.**

**Reviews would be much appreciated. Thank you guys for reading the first chapter!**


	2. Chapter 2

Sakura sighed as she stared at the clock. 2:30, still 30 more minutes until she gets out.

"I'm going to get something to drink. Don't you dare leave this room young lady," the teacher said and walked out of the door.

Sakura put her head down on the table. "Geez, why did I have to fall asleep in class?" Her eyes slowly closed. "I'll just rest my eyes for a few seconds," she mumbled to herself.

**x-x-x**

_She was currently standing in the middle of an exquisite garden. Butterflies flew by as Sakura admired the beautiful scene. The wind tousled her soft auburn colored hair. Sakura took in a deep breath and smiled. The sweet aroma of flowers filled her nostrils. It felt so peaceful here._

_Walking around, she picked a flower and carefully wove it into her hair. Sakura smiled contently as she twirled around in this heavenly garden. She stopped when she noticed someone standing a good distance away from her. The person had messy brown colored hair. He was wearing a pair of jeans and a green t-shirt. However, she could not see who the person was because his face was blurred. The figure turned around and was walking away. For some unknown reason, her hand reached out towards the person, as if wanting him to stop. "Wait, why are you here?" she asked, unable to move. "Who are you?"_

**x-x-x**

"Who are you..?" Sakura mumbled, still dreaming. As her eyes slowly opened, she saw a blurry face in front of her, but she couldn't make out who it was.

"Who am I? I'm Syaoran." A voice reached through her foggy mind. As soon as her fatigue left her, Sakura saw an amber eyed boy in front of her.

"Seichi?" she asked. Then she remembered. He said he was Syaoran. "Stupid Sakura, why'd you say Seichi? He said he was Syaoran!" Sakura mentally scolded herself.

"Seichi? I'm hurt my dear. How can you not tell the difference between my brother and me?" Syaoran said dramatically, putting a hand over his heart for effect.

"Why are you here?" Sakura asked, dismissing what he said earlier.

"Because," Syaoran replied.

"Because . . . ?" Sakura questioned. "Yea, continue…"

"No reason." Syaoran smiled mysteriously. "You know Sakura; you really shouldn't be sleeping during detention. You don't want another day in here do you?" He leaned closer to Sakura's face and put a finger under her chin, lifting her head as so their eyes were leveled. Sakura blushed. "He looks exactly like Seichi but yet he's so different," she thought.

Syaoran smirked as he saw Sakura blush. "Just like I thought," he said to himself. "Why don't we get out of here and go some place fun," Syaoran suggested. Before Sakura had a chance to respond, a voice broke through her thoughts.

"She's not going anywhere," the teacher, Ms. Takamani said, walking back into the room with a cup of coffee. She gave Syaoran a what-are-you-doing-here look. Noticing this, Syaoran said, "Nice seeing you Ms. Takamani." And he walked out the door.

**x-x-x**

"I'm so hungry," Sakura said to herself, walking out of the school. All of a sudden she felt someone pull her wrist and before she knew it, she was in someone's arms.

Sakura was scared, and thinking that she was going to get kidnapped, starting punching the person on the chest.

"Hey, stop that," a familiar voice said. Sakura looked and came face to face with the amber-eyed stranger.

"Oh, it's you," Sakura said, relieved. "Well, don't sound so enthusiastic about it," Syaoran said jokingly as he tightened his grip around Sakura's waist. "I heard you were hungry, how about we go get something to eat?"

Sakura knew Syaoran was a flirt and that he'd dated almost every girl in the school. Everyone knew that. Getting close to Syaoran would only get her hurt. "And besides, I like Seichi," Sakura thought to herself.

"No thanks," Sakura said, trying to break free of Syaoran's grasp, but her efforts were in vain. "Why are you trying to avoid me?" Syaoran asked. Sakura didn't respond, only looked away. There was an awkward silence between them and all of a sudden, Sakura's cell phone rang. Syaoran let her go, so she could answer her phone.

"Hello?" She said into the receiver and then all of a sudden her face lit up. Syaoran raised one of his eyebrows, seeing this sudden change of mood.

"Yup, I just got out. It was so boring in there," She said, continuing her conversation. Syaoran stood there, feeling invisible. He studied Sakura. Her auburn hair was swaying in the cool breeze. Her cheeks were flushed from talking; she seemed very excited. Her eyes were the most intriguing. They were a deep emerald color. When looking at them, you'd feel as if you were lying on the soft lush grass in a beautiful green meadow. Syaoran was too busy thinking that he didn't notice Sakura got off the phone.

"Earth to Syaoran," Sakura said, waving a hand in front of his face. "Hello?"

"Huh? What happened?" Syaoran asked as he snapped out of his trance.

"Uh... I don't know about you, but I have to go. I'm meeting someone soon," she said, and turned around to leave.

Syaoran grabbed hold of her hand. "Let me walk you home," he gave her a charming smile. "That's not necessary, I'm not going home. I'm going to meet that person right now," she said. "Oh." Syaoran let go of her hand.

"Bye," Sakura said and they parted ways. Syaoran stood in the same spot for a while, thinking over the events that just took place. "I feel funny," Syaoran said to himself as he started walking in the opposite direction Sakura was going.

**x-x-x**

At Shiko café, Seichi was looking out the window, thinking over the things he wanted to say to her today. A sweet voice broke through his thoughts. "Hi Seichi," Sakura smiled at him and took a seat. Seichi smiled.

After ordering their drinks, Seichi took Sakura's hand in his and looked deeply into her eyes. Sakura blushed and wondered what Seichi was doing.

Unknown to them, a figure stood outside of Shiko café, staring at them with cold glassy eyes.

* * *

**Author's Note: Rawr, I hate what they've done to the chapter thingies. Now you can't leave more than one line of space between scenes and stuff. Do you guys know what Iym trying to say? It's kinda confusing. XD And whoopy! Iym done with this chapter! I finished all my homework last night just so I could work on this today. :D I think Iym going to update a chapter every Saturday or Sunday. There's too much homework on the weekdays to work on it. Hehe. Anyways, hope you guys liked this chapter!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: Hi everyone! Sorry about the late update. This chapter is a tad bit longer than the previous ones so maybe you guys would forgive me. :P Anyways, here's the third chapter of Listen to Your Heart. Enjoy!**

**x-x-x**

Seichi took Sakura's hand in his and looked deeply into her eyes. "Sakura, there's something I've been meaning to tell you."

Sakura nodded and waited patiently for what he was about to say.

"I like you Sakura," Seichi said. This made Sakura's already flushed face even rosier. Before Sakura had a chance to say anything, a loud voice pierced through her thoughts.

"WAKE UP SAKURA!" Sakura's eyes shot open as she heard the loud yell, her heart racing. Looking to her right, she saw an angry Touya giving her the evil eye.

"You're. Going. To. Be. Late," he said as he pointed at her alarm clock.

"7:30" Sakura thought and looked away. After a few seconds, reality dawned on to her and she quickly averted her eyes back to her alarm clock.

"7:30! I'm going to be late for school! Touya, why didn't you wake me up earlier!" She yelled as she ran around the room, pulling on her hair like a maniac.

Touya sweat dropped. "I tried to wake you up at 6:30, and you said you'd wake up in 5 minutes, so I went back downstairs."

"And you believed me!" Sakura ran to the bathroom and slammed the door shut. Running water was heard. The tall Touya shook his head and walked out the door.

**x-x-x**

At 7:45, the homeroom bell rang. Sakura entered the classroom, trying to catch her breath.

"Sakura, are you OK?" Tomoyo whispered to Sakura as she took her seat.

"I just ran the marathon today," she said, still panting.

Tomoyo giggled. She understood exactly what her friend meant, it happens almost everyday.

"Why does our homeroom have to be on the third floor? It makes running to class so much harder," Sakura complained to herself.

**x-x-x**

_Seichi took Sakura's hand in his and looked deeply into her eyes. "Sakura, there's something I've been meaning to tell you."_

_Sakura nodded and waited patiently for what he was about to say._

"_I like you Sakura," Seichi said._

Sakura sighed as she took her Math book out of her locker for her last period class. "I wish that was what happened."

_**-x-x- Flashback -x-x-**_

_After ordering their drinks, Seichi took Sakura's hand in his and looked deeply into her eyes. Sakura blushed and wondered what Seichi was doing._

"_You see, Saku-" Before Seichi could say anymore, a girl with silky black hair sat down next to him and hugged his arm._

"_Hi Seichi honey," she said cheerfully, ignoring the fact that Sakura was there._

"_Uh, hi Naomi," Seichi said hesitantly. Sakura sat there blinking._

"_You said you wanted to meet me here on the phone? What's up?" Naomi asked._

_Sakura was shocked. "I thought he wanted to meet me. Why is she here!" her mind screamed at her. Her thoughts were all jumbled up and for some unknown reason, her heart was aching._

_The waiter walked over. "Miss, would you like to order anything?"_

"_Yes, I'd like a glass of lemonade please," Naomi said and then turned back to Seichi, smiling, revealing her pearly white teeth._

"_I think I need to go now," Sakura said, feeling a big lump in her throat._

"_Let me walk you home," Seichi suggested but Sakura shook her head. "No, I can walk by myself. See you."_

"_Bye!" Naomi added and waved happily as Sakura was leaving._

_Hot tears streamed down her emerald eyes as she started running home._

_**-x-x- End of Flashback -x-x-**_

Sakura felt tears forming at the brim of her eyes and quickly tried to blink them back.

"Sakura?" she heard a voice call from behind her. She turned around and came face to face with Seichi.

"Sakura, were you crying? What's wrong?" he asked, his voice filled with concern.

"I wasn't crying. I just felt sleepy," she lied.

"Oh. Well, about yesterday-" Seichi started but was interrupted by Sakura. "You don't have to explain anything," Sakura said coldly. This surprised the both of them. Sakura was always so cheerful and full of life. Never in her life had she spoken so coldly towards anyone, and she felt really guilty after the words came out of her mouth.

"Um, I think I should still explain to you. Don't misunderstand anything. There's nothing-" Out of nowhere, Naomi jumped on Seichi's back, almost causing him to fall over. Sakura frowned again.

"Hi, darling! Come on, we're gonna be late for class!" Naomi chirped as she started pulling his arm.

"Sorry, I have to get to class," Sakura said and quickly walked down the hallway, unable to take anymore of this.

"Naomi, what are you doing? There's nothing between us. Stop clinging onto me," Seichi said seriously and walked away.

Naomi was outraged. "What can he see in that Kinomoto girl? She's just some lowlife loser! I swear, Kinomoto, I will make your life miserable." She grinned evilly.

Unbeknownst to them, a certain amber eyed boy had witnessed the whole scene. "So she likes Seichi," he thought. There seemed to be a tiny glint of sadness in his eyes, but he was probably unaware of his own feelings.

**x-x-x**

He was watching her from the back of the room. She was staring out the window with a faraway look in her eyes.

"She's probably thinking about him," he thought to himself.

"Sakura Kinomoto, would you kindly give us the answer to number two please," the teacher asked, causing her to panic.

"Oh my gosh, what'll I do? I don't know the answer! What was she talking about?" She started biting her nails.

Syaoran decided to raise his hand and the teacher motioned for him to answer.

"Negative three is less than or equal to x which is less than or equal to nine."

"Good," the teacher said and moved on. Sakura sighed, relieved that was over.

The bell rang, signaling that class was over.

"I'm so glad this is the last period of the day! I'm so tired," some students said to their friends and walked out of the door. As Syaoran was about to exit the classroom, the teacher called him.

"Ms. Kinomoto, you can come over also," Mrs. Amazamichi said while Sakura was packing.

"What's up Mrs. A.?" Syaoran asked after Sakura walked over.

"Syaoran, I was wondering if you could tutor Ms. Kinomoto. It seems that she doesn't understand Math that well. Or perhaps it's because she doesn't pay attention in class," Mrs. Amazamichi gave Sakura the you-know-it's-true look. Sakura laughed nervously. "I'm sure that an A plus student like you could show her the fundamentals."

"Sure, no problem," Syaoran said and looked at Sakura. "if she wants me to tutor her that is."

Mrs. Amazamichi looked at Sakura. "Um, that'd be great. I'm sure you'd be a very good tutor," Sakura faked a laugh.

"Then it's settled. Good luck with the tutoring Mr. Li," the teacher smiled, almost seemingly glad that she got rid of Sakura. She had been staying after school for extra help all week, and it seemed that Mrs. Amazamichi needed a little break.

"She just wanted to get rid of me," Sakura said under her breath.

"Pardon?" Mrs. Amazamichi asked. Sakura just smiled and waved as she walked out of the room with Syaoran not far behind.

**x-x-x**

"But Li, I don't drink coffee. I've tried it once and it was horrible!" A frightened Sakura was being dragged to the nearest Starbucks by a frustrated chestnut haired boy.

"Come on, it'll help wake you up. You can't focus on math if you keep dozing off!"

"But it's Friday! Can't we do this tutoring thing tomorrow? We've got all weekend!" Sakura cried, trying to run away from the coffee shop.

"It'll take a year to teach you all the stuff we learned in Math class at this rate!" Syaoran said jokingly.

"Hey! That's not funny. I know I'm a little bit slow at Math, but don't make me sound like I'm _that_ STUPID!" Sakura was now angry and she yanked her arm out of Syaoran's grasp.

"Ok, I'm sorry," Syaoran said softly. "Fine, we'll do the tutoring thing tomorrow. But you better be awake in the morning. Mrs. A. would think I didn't tutor you at all if you just blank out in Math class again."

"I promise," Sakura said cheerfully and was about to walk on home, but when she turned around, she saw Naomi hanging onto Seichi's arm and they were walking their way.

Before she knew what she was doing, she found herself taking a hold of Syaoran's hand and saying, "Let's go for ice cream!" in a cheerful voice. Maybe _too_ cheerful.

Syaoran was obviously confused at the change of mood. "Maybe she has a split personality," he thought to himself and then laughed. But then he saw Seichi and Naomi walking towards him and Sakura. His expression changed right on the spot. His face grew dark and it seemed as if his worst enemy was approaching.

* * *

**Author's note: Uh oh! What's gonna happen! Stay tuned for the next chapter! Oh gosh, I sound like that guy on TV who says that stuff after a Pokémon episode. Lol. Type, type, type and REVIEW! Yay reviews! XD**


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note: Hello everyone. Iym back. :) But I was disappointed in the number of reviews I had for the last chapter. I expected more reviews. I didn't feel like writing for a while because I thought not many people wanted to read this story. :( But nonetheless, I have the next chapter for those who wanted to continue reading. A big thank you to those who reviewed for the last chapter :D Here's chapter four of Listen to Your Heart.**

Syaoran eyed Seichi and Naomi seriously as they walked towards him and Sakura.

"Hi Li, hello Kinomoto," Naomi chirped. Sakura waved at her and then looked at the two brothers who were staring at each other.

"I won't let you have Sakura," Seichi thought to himself as he saw that Sakura was holding onto his hand.

_**-x-x- Flashback -x-x-**_

"_Hi Seichi darling," Naomi said happily as she sat down next to him._

_Seichi heaved a sigh. "Why are you always following me? I don't like you, so leave me alone."_

"_Well, you don't have much of a choice there my dear," Naomi smirked and handed Seichi a photo. His eyes widened as he took in what he saw._

"_You wouldn't want me to show this picture to everyone now would you? Your sweet Sakura's reputation is at stake. And if the principle or teachers find out, she can even get expelled for such behavior."_

_Seichi gritted his teeth. It was a picture of Sakura and a male model in a compromising position._

"_She didn't do anything. But twisting a few words would make anyone believe anything. You know how rumors are," she laughed._

"_Fine, what do you want?" Seichi reluctantly asked._

"_Simple. You just have to be my boyfriend."_

_**-x-x- End of Flashback -x-x-**_

Seichi frowned, recalling the memory.

"So where are you two lovebirds going?" Naomi asked, noticing that Sakura and Syaoran were holding hands.

Sakura blushed and let go of his hand. She didn't know what had come over her before, trying to use Syaoran like that. She was about to say that nothing's going on between them when suddenly, Syaoran wrapped his arm around Sakura's waist.

"Saki and I are going for ice cream," he said and winked.

Seichi felt hurt and couldn't bear to see any more, so he walked off.

"Hey Seichi! Wait!" Naomi cried and ran to catch up with him, leaving a blinking Sakura and Syaoran behind.

"So, how about that ice cream?" Syaoran asked in a low voice as he brought her closer to him.

Sakura blushed and tried to look away. "I thought you said you wanted to tutor me?"

"I'm having second thoughts," he whispered into her ear, sending shivers through her body.

"Ok, let's go!" Syaoran said happily and started dragging Sakura off to the nearest ice cream shop.

**x-x-x**

"Who knew you loved chocolate so much, Li," Sakura and giggled.

"Call me Syaoran," he said smiling.

"Eh?" Sakura tilted her head a little to the left, making her look like a confused child.

"Sakura's so weird. At times she's aggressive and cold, but other times, she acts so innocent that it's hard for anyone _not_ to like her." Syaoran thought to himself as he stared at her.

"So what do you think of Seichi and Naomi," Syaoran asked out of the blue.

Sakura's cheerful face was now replaced by an angry and sad expression. "I don't want to talk about them."

"Are you jealous?" Syaoran asked playfully. This caused Sakura's face to turn red. Syaoran didn't know if it was from anger or embarrassment.

"I have to go," Sakura said quietly and ran out. Syaoran quickly took off after her.

He found her sitting on a bench at King Penguin Park. He walked over and sat down next to her.

"Have you ever felt that it was wrong to like someone? But no matter what you tell yourself, you can't help the way you feel?" Sakura asked after a few moments of silence. Tears were slowly making their way down her face.

This is the first time anyone said anything like that to him. He never thought about having a long-term relationship with anyone. It was all just fun and games. His family is known as the Li Clan, the richest and most famous people in all of China; whatever he wants, he gets. Never in his life was he unable to attain something he wanted.

"No," he replied although Sakura's question was rhetorical. "I always get what I want."

"You're really arrogant, you know?" She sniffled.

"Nope."

After more moments of silence, Syaoran spoke.

"So you like Seichi?" No beating around the bush.

Sakura didn't say anything. She had her back to Syaoran all this time so he was unable to see her reaction. But her shoulders were slightly shaking, indicating that she must be crying again.

Suddenly, she felt two strong arms wrap around her body. Syaoran buried his face in her hair and breathed in her scent. "Hmm, her hair smells like cherry blossoms." He thought to himself.

"Forget about him." This shocked Sakura. What was Syaoran doing? Why was he saying all this to her?

"Li, wha-"

"Call me Syaoran," he said in an aggressive voice, but it softened quickly afterwards. "Call me Syaoran."

"Let go of me," Sakura said coldly. "We're not friends so I won't call you Syaoran. And you shouldn't call me Sakura either. Address me as Kinomoto."

Syaoran chose to ignore what she said and held her closer to him.

"Is he worth it? I mean, it seems like he's always around that Naomi girl. I even heard someone say that they're a couple now."

"Shut up, Li. I don't want to hear anymore!" She covered her ears and shut her eyes tight.

"Give up, Sakura. Don't waste your time on him.

She quickly turned around and faced Syaoran. He was shocked to see that fresh tears were streaming down her face. Her eyes were puffy and red from crying so much, and her hair was disarrayed. He did not know why, but it pained him to see the sorrow in her eyes. It hurt even more than the time when his favorite pet dog was ran over by a car.

"It can't be true! I know because whenever I see him and Naomi together, he never smiles. When you're with someone special, you're supposed to be happy! But there's always this desolate look in his eyes. I want to take away his loneliness." Sakura put a hand on her heart. "It hurts to see him sad." Once more, she broke out in tears.

At this point, Syaoran didn't know what to do. He was never good at comforting people. Staying by her side and keeping her company was all he could do. He brought her closer to him and let her cry in his arms.

"Th-they're r-really t-t-together now, a-aren't they?" She sobbed uncontrollably. "I'm s-supposed to be h-happy f-for them. B-but it hurts. It hurts s-so much S-syaoran."

This was the first time she ever called him Syaoran.

He felt really troubled at the moment. Why had he said all that stuff to her earlier? What would he gain in telling her to give up on Seichi? He really didn't know. But later on that day, he promised himself he'd protect her. He didn't know why he did it, but it felt right. He never wanted to see Sakura cry like this again. Never.

* * *

**Author's Note: I lost the plot! It got flushed down the toilet along with my brain, lol. The enthusiasm that was with the starting of this fanfic is now gone. It disappeared somewhere, so I have to look for it. Is the story getting boring? If so, let me know. I'll refrain from writing any more. Remember to review. :)**


	5. Chapter 5

_Set me free  
Set me free  
Set me free  
Stop tearing up my heart  
Tearing me apart  
Set me free  
Set me free  
Set me free  
Can't break your heart  
Set me free_

Sakura lay on her bed listening to the radio. Her hair was spread out in a messy bunch on her pillow. She sighed as she raised a hand to brush away a few strands of hair from her eyes.

"That song completely expresses how I feel right now."

She heaved another heavy sigh, and unexpectedly, an image of her crying in Syaoran's arms came to mind.

"Ahh! I hate my life!" She screamed and buried her face in her pillow.

**x-x-x**

Syaoran was recalling the incident at the park yesterday. He has never seen Sakura cry. She smiles all of the time; it seemed as if she does not have a care in the world.

"Crying over some stupid guy," Syaoran thought and scowled.

His eyes glimmered with a tiny sadness as he sighed. "What's this weird feeling?"

He closed his eyes and tried to find a reason why, but couldn't come up with anything.

Suddenly, the door to his room flew open. Syaoran turned his head to see who it was.

"Haven't you ever heard of knocking?" he asked and turned away with disinterest.

"What were you doing with Sakura? What do you want with her?" the chestnut-haired boy asked coldly.

"What are you talking about?"

"Why are you hanging around Sakura all of a sudden?"

"No reason."

"Back off. Sakura's not going to like you." Syaoran didn't reply.

"With the way you are, you're only going to hurt her," Seichi said.

"Look who's talking." Syaoran gritted his teeth. Of all people, he was the one lecturing him about not hurting Sakura. "You're the only one who's hurting her. Did you know she has a crush on you?"

Seichi stood there dumbfounded and couldn't say a word. Sakura has a crush on him?

"That's right. She has a crush on you. But you know what you did? You broke her heart into millions of tiny pieces." Syaoran was throwing his arms in the air dramatically. "She cried over you for I don't know how many hours. If anyone hurt her it's you."

The room fell silent. Without saying a word, Seichi walked back to his own room and slowly closed the door. He slid to the floor and stared at his feet.

"How ironic." He laughed a hollow laugh. "The person who didn't want her to be hurt, the one who always wanted to protect her, was the one who caused her so much pain." A teardrop fell onto the wooden floor, making a soft tap.

Syaoran was still lying in bed feeling very frustrated. "Maybe I shouldn't have told him," he mumbled, drifting off to sleep.

"But I still can't help feel a little jealous that such a wonderful girl likes you." Being half asleep by then, Syaoran was not conscience of what he was saying.

**x-x-x**

"So how was your date with Eriol?" Sakura asked into the receiver as she smiled and twirled a lock of her hair around her finger.

"It was pretty good," Tomoyo answered.

"Pretty good? Come on Tomoyo! You know it was awesome." Sakura giggled.

"Sakura, you're so mean." Tomoyo laughed. "But it _was_ awesome! Eriol was super nice and he's so cute and the date was so much fun and we walked around the park after the movie and it was so romantic." She ran on and on and on, and after about three minutes, she stopped to take a breath.

Sakura sweat dropped. "Seemed like fun."

"Yea. So what did you do yesterday?" Tomoyo asked, but there was no reply. "Hello? Sakura? Are you still there?"

"Yea, I'm still here," Sakura said in a sad voice.

"Sweetie, what's wrong? You sound really depressed."

"It's Seichi." Sakura felt a lump in her throat and her eyes filled with tears. "Um, I think he's with Naomi now," she said as best as she could.

"Aw, Sakura. I'm sorry." Tomoyo said softly. She heard Sakura sniffling and knew that she was crying. "You want me to come over?"

After a few seconds, Sakura said, "No, I just want to be alone right now."

"Okay then. I'll talk to you later. I hope you feel better." And they hung up after saying their goodbyes.

Tomoyo looked very troubled and concerned. "I hope Sakura will be okay."

**x-x-x**

A phone call woke Sakura up from her nap. She rubbed her eyes and looked around for her cell phone.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Sakura, this is Syaoran."

"What do you want?" Sakura said sleepily.

"I was wondering if you wanted to meet up later on today."

"For what?" Before he could respond, Sakura remembered something. "Oh, the math tutoring thing? Uh, sure."

"Yea, the… math tutoring thing," Syaoran said slowly. "What time do you want to meet up?"

"Erh, what time is it now?" She looked over to her alarm clock. 10:25AM. "I guess I slept through dinner last night," she thought to herself. "How about noon?"

"Sounds good. I'll see you then."

"Bye." Sakura hung up and set her alarm clock to 11:30. "I hate math," she mumbled before going back to sleep.

**x-x-x**

"Okay, so this section is called solving systems of equations in three variables. You just have to use the system of elimination in order to find the answer to the three variables." Syaoran explained. "Okay, so let's start with this problem."

Sakura looked at the paper and suddenly, it felt like she was swimming in a pool of letters and numbers. "Um, Syaoran, I feel dizzy."

They both sweat dropped.

Syaoran moved closer to Sakura and pointed at the first two equations. "Five x plus three y plus two x equals 2 and two x plus y minus z equals 5. Let's try to get rid of the z. So what should you do in order to do that?"

"I don't know." Sakura said.

"You multiply the second equation by two and then add the two equations together. So now the z is gone and you're left with nine x plus five y equals twelve. Are you still following?"

"Oh, I get it!" Sakura smiled.

"Great. So now you do the same thing with the first and third equation."

"Since both equations already have two z, I should just subtract them. And I'll be left with four x minus y equals negative fourteen." Sakura said as she did the math out on a piece of paper.

"See, this isn't that hard," Syaoran smiled. "She's a really bright girl. I guess she just has to pay attention in class." He thought and laughed.

"What's so funny? Do I have a pen mark on my face?" Sakura asked and put a hand to her face.

"No, I just thought of something funny."

"What's so funny?" Sakura asked, her emerald eyes shining with curiosity.

"Oh, nothing." He smiled. Sakura moved closer to him. "Tell meeee! I want to know!" She demanded childishly.

The smiles left their faces and the room grew silent as they stared at each other, their faces only a few inches apart. Sakura blushed.

"Stop blushing, Sakura! Why are you blushing!" she mentally screamed at herself.

Syaoran interrupted her thoughts by putting a hand to her face. Sakura looked at him, startled.

"She has beautiful green eyes, my favorite color." Syaoran thought.

And then slowly, ever so slowly, he moved his face towards hers. Sakura was so nervous that she could literally hear her heart beating.

But before Syaoran could close the gap between them, they heard the front door open and footsteps coming closer.

Sakura and Syaoran quickly moved away from each other and their eyes grew wide with shock as they saw who entered the room.

* * *

**Author's Note: Yayie! Done with chapter five. :D Liked it? Didn't like it? Review :)**


	6. Chapter 6

Sakura and Syaoran quickly moved away from each other and their eyes grew wide with shock as they saw who entered the room.

A huge angry looking penguin was now standing in front of Sakura and Syaoran. The two sweat dropped and their eyes twitched.

"What in the world…?" Syaoran mumbled.

A man looking to be in his thirties walked into the room. He had the same auburn hair that Sakura had. This is Fujitaka, the father of Touya and Sakura Kinomoto.

Sakura decided to have the study session at her house instead because she was sure that she would see Seichi at Syaoran's house, and she didn't want to see Seichi.

"Hi, Sakura. You're awake already? Who's your friend?" He smiled his oh so genuine smile.

"Uh, um. Oh, my friend! This is Syaoran. He's my umm, math tutor. Yea, math tutor." She sweat dropped.

"Why do I feel so nervous?" She silently asked herself.

The penguin was yelling and throwing its arms in the air, but its voice was muffled, so no one understood what it was saying.

"Oh, that's just Touya. He's been stuck in that suit for a few hours," Fujitaka explained.

"Well, we're going to go up to my room and study, since Touya's yelling is distracting me." And so Sakura and Syaoran gathered up their math books and notebooks and started up the stairs.

As Syaoran walked by, the penguin Touya lashed out at him, crying out incoherent words. But luckily for Syaoran, Fujitaka held him back before he made contact with Syaoran.

"Now, now, Touya. Be nice to Sakura's friend," Fujitaka said, pointing a finger at him.

Touya replied by yelling more incoherent words and stormed off towards the kitchen, only to find that the penguin suit was too wide to go through the entrance. He stomped his foot angrily. Fujitaka smiled at his son's childish behavior.

**x-x-x**

As Syaoran entered Sakura's room, he felt as if he stumbled into pink world. Everything in her room was pink; from curtains to bed sheets, even the walls were painted pink. She had a vase of flowers on her windowsill and posters of puppies on the walls. The room smelled of cherry blossoms, just like Sakura's hair.

"So you feel like you're in pink world?" Sakura asked with a smile.

"Huh? How did you know what I was thinking?"

"Everyone says that when they come into my room."

"Oh."

And so they continued their studying. Sakura couldn't help but blush when she was around Syaoran.

"We a-almost kissed," she thought. Involuntarily, she glanced at Syaoran's lips, and then quickly turned away, blushing hotly.

"I hope he didn't notice," she prayed.

"Sakura. Sakura? Hello…?" Syaoran said as he waved a hand in front of her face.

"What? Huh?" Sakura said, snapping out of her daydream.

"Your face seems really pink. Are you sick?" Syaoran said as he put a hand on her forehead, which caused Sakura to blush even more.

"Stop it, Sakura! You're turning into a tomato!" She screamed at herself mentally.

After putting his hand to Sakura's forehead, he put it on his own forehead.

"Nope, you don't have a fever," he said and looked at her quizzically.

"Hey, you're not blushing are you?" Syaoran asked teasingly and gave her a sly smile. (The flirtatious Syaoran is back!)

"W-what? Blushing? What are you talking about?" Sakura turned her head the other way and tried to act cool about the situation.

At this very moment, it was as if time stopped. Syaoran placed a finger underneath Sakura's chin and brought her face towards his. She looked into his amber eyes, which were warm and grave.

"Syaoran…" She whispered.

"Why don't we continue where we left off?" He said in a hoarse voice as he inched closer to her.

Again, Sakura felt her heart beating a thousand times faster than it should.

"I'm surprised my heart didn't already explode," she thought to herself.

Millions of thoughts were running through her mind while Syaoran moved closer to her. A part of her told her to turn away, but this little tiny part of her told her that it was what she wanted.

Closer… and still closer…

BOOM! The door was kicked wide open with an angry penguin at the door. (Ooh, you guys must hate that penguin now. Interrupting Syaoran and Sakura AGAIN!)

"Blah blah blah blah blah!" It said.

Both Syaoran and Sakura blushed and moved away from each other as quickly as possible.

Apparently, Touya didn't get out of the penguin costume yet. It was a good thing too, because right after he kicked the door open, he was about to charge into the room and murder Syaoran on the spot. However, he ended up falling flat on his butt because of course, the costume was too wide for him to enter through the door.

**x-x-x**

"Pop quiz," Mrs. Amazamichi announced, receiving groans and sighs from the class. "There is only one question, so it's either you pass or fail."

As Mrs. Amazamichi placed the sheet of paper on Sakura's desk, she gave her a disappointed look, like she always did. Sakura felt sad that her teacher didn't have any faith in her.

"I'll show her," she thought and started reading the problem.

x+2y+z10

2x-y+3z-5

2x-3y-5z27

"Hey! Syaoran went over a problem like this with me during the weekend!" Sakura thought cheerfully, and then without warning, an image of Syaoran flashed through her mind. She blushed and then shook her head.

"Why does this keep on happening?" She wondered confusedly.

"One more minute!" the teacher announced, and Sakura panicked as she quickly scribbled out the steps in order to find the solution. Mrs. Amazamichi collected the quizzes and gave the class work to do.

The bell rang and students were filing out of the classroom. As Sakura was exiting, the teacher called her name.

"Don't tell me I failed," she thought.

"Yes, Mrs. Amazamichi?" Sakura said in a frightened voice.

"Don't worry Sakura, you didn't fail," the teacher said with a smile. Sakura relaxed. "In fact, you earned a 100 on the quiz. I just wanted to let you know that I'm very proud of you and keep up the good work."

Sakura found Syaoran at his locker.

"Hey," Sakura said, smiling.

"What's up, Saki?" Syaoran gave her a grin and winked at her.

Sakura blushed. "Mrs. Amazamichi said I got a 100 on the quiz, and she even said she was proud of me!"

"All thanks to yours truly," he said triumphantly.

"So…" he said in a sly voice and wrapped his arms around Sakura's waist. "How are you going to return the favor?"

Sakura tried to slither out of his hold, but that made him tighten his grasp even more. He slowly brought her closer to him.

"Oh no, here we go again," Sakura thought.

All of a sudden, Sakura's eyes felt very heavy, and soon, they slowly fluttered close as Syaoran's lips neared hers.

And soon enough, his lips found hers. He applied a soft pressure at first but then it slowly turned deeper and more passionate.

"Syaoran, no." Sakura said. The command wasn't very convincing, since it was issued on a breathy sigh. She was surprised she could even talk at all.

She tried to pull back from him, but it was no use. Syaoran's hold around her waist made it impossible for her to push him away. Sakura gave up fighting back and soon relaxed in his arms. It was with surprise and quite a bit of joy that Syaoran felt Sakura answer to his kiss. He pulled her closer to him, making sure that there was no space left between them. Sakura felt her legs begin to tremble while he held her so close. Her arms subconsciously made their way around his neck.

In what felt like an eternity, Syaoran quietly pulled away, and they were both left staring at each other's flushed faces.

Sakura stared into Syaoran's deep amber eyes. They were warm and serious at the same time. And for some unknown reason, there was something different about them. She couldn't quite place it, but she could see that something changed. His arms were still tightly wrapped around her waist.

"Sakura, there's something I need to tell you," he said softly.

"Oh look! It's Li and Kinomoto! Aren't they sweet together?" A highly irritating voice pierced through the nice moment.

It was Naomi, and beside her was Seichi. He was wearing a deep frown.

"S-seichi?" Sakura's voice was soft and weak. She gently pushed Syaoran away and looked at Seichi. Her heart was beating very fast, and she felt a lump in her throat.

"It's not what it looks like," Sakura said weakly.

What was she doing? She didn't need to explain to them. But for some reason, she felt that she had to. She didn't want Seichi to misunderstand her and Syaoran. But why? Why does she care what he thinks? There's no chance she can be with him.

"He doesn't care about you, and he never will!" Her conscious screamed at her.

A flood of emotions washed over Sakura. She stood there, feeling fatigue take over.

"Sakura and I are a couple now," Syaoran said happily and put his arm around Sakura's shoulder. She looked at him incredulously.

"Treat her well." Seichi's voice and face were devoid of emotion. "Let's go, Naomi."

And they left.

* * *

**Author's Note: Oooh, Sakura and Syaoran kissed! XD**

**Good job to those who guessed it was Touya! And good try for those who thought it was Seichi. Hehe. This is my quickest update ever! Aren't you guys proud of me:D**

**The next chapter won't be up as quick as this one but I'll try my best! Remember to review and let me know how to the chapter was. Any ideas for the next chapter? I haven't thought of any yet, lol. I usually sit in class, and then this idea pops into my head and Iym like OH MY GOSH! I have to write that for the next chapter! Haha.**

**Well, thank you guys for reading this far. I've never written anything beyond six chapters. Let's hope this one would break the record. :)**


	7. Chapter 7

Seichi had a very neat room. His walls were a light shade of blue, and posters were nicely hung up on the walls. There was a nightstand next to his bed; a small lamp and a telephone were placed on it. A chest of drawers stood to the left of his room, next to the door, and the computer was to the right of his room. His window was open, the dark blue curtains swayed softly in the evening breeze.

There was a desolate look in his eyes; so full of angst. His chestnut hair was messier than usual as he lied there, lifelessly on his bed.

"I should be happy for them," he softly said. "I can't be with her anyways. Naomi would show everyone the picture, and Sakura's reputation would be ruined."

He heaved a heavy sigh and closed his eyes. "Syaoran's always been lucky. He always had everything I wanted. He was always the center of attention."

_**-x-x- Flashback -x-x-**_

"_Mommy, mommy! Look what I got on my spelling test!" Young Syaoran excitedly waved his test in front of his mother's face._

"_Okay. Let mommy see what you got," said the Yelan, the beautiful woman with silky black hair. Her eyes lightened up as she read the paper. "Oh, honey, you got a 90! Mommy's so proud of you!"_

_A little boy wearing a white shirt and a pair of green shorts tugged at the Yelan's slender dress. She looked down at him. "What is it Seichi?"_

_The young Seichi handed his mother his spelling test also, giving a small smile. Yelan took a quick glance at it and gave it back to him. "Hmm, you got a 100. Good job." Seichi frowned._

_A middle-aged man walked into the large room. He went over and kissed his wife on the cheek._

"_Darling, our Syaoran got a 90 on his spelling test!" Yelan exclaimed. Her husband laughed happily. He scooped Syaoran into his arms and twirled him around._

"_Great job, son! Let's go celebrate!"_

_And so they exited the room, leaving Seichi. Tears were streaming down from his eyes._

"_Why doesn't anyone pay attention to me?" He cried. "Mommy, daddy, I want to be loved too."_

_But no one heard him. He was left alone in his big mansion. Servants and maids walked by, but no one noticed him. No one cared._

_**-x-x- End of Flashback -x-x-**_

Seichi got out of bed and walked to his window. The sky was filled with different shades of red, yellow and orange.

He looked out his window and saw a little girl walking happily with her parents. He wanted what she had. He wanted to experience the warmth of a loving family. But even that was too much to ask for.

Ever since he met Sakura, he felt happier. She showed him compassion and treated him as another human being. She never treated him as if he was invisible and she truly cared for him. Her smile would always brighten up his day. He wanted to help her keep that smile. Even if it meant sacrificing his chances of being with her.

"I was lonely to begin with. It's not going to make a difference now." His words were carried away by the wind.

**x-x-x**

Her emerald eyes were filled with confusion as she peered out her small window. She gazed at the beauty of the setting sun and listened to the hypnotizing rustling of leaves. Sakura gingerly rested her chin on her hands.

She remembered the way he kissed her. It was soft and demanding at the same time. What frightened her most was not the fact that he kissed her, but the fact that she responded to that kiss.

She thought about Syaoran. He was flirty, arrogant, and obnoxious. He always thought he could get what he wanted. But she loved his smile. She loved how warm she felt when she was in his arms.

And then she thought about Seichi. An image of Seichi hugging Naomi flit through her mind. Sakura shook her head. He was very nice to her. She remembered her first day at Shouji High School. Although she was a total stranger, Seichi went out of his way to show her around the school and befriend her. Because of him, she was able to feel comfortable in a new environment.

Waves of emotions went through Sakura as she reviewed the series of events that took place the past week. She was so confused that she didn't even know what to think anymore.

Then a phone call interrupted her. It was Syaoran.

"What do you want?" Sakura asked bitterly.

"That's no way to talk to your new boyfriend," Syaoran said jokingly.

"I never-" Before she was able to finish her sentence, she was cut off by Syaoran.

"My cousin's coming over from Hong Kong. I'm going to pick her up at the airport in an hour. I'd like it if you come with me," he said.

"Why should I? It's got nothing to do with me."

"Sounds good, see you in an hour," Syaoran said, totally dismissing what she said. "Bye darling." And he hung up.

"Unbelievable," Sakura said and threw her phone angrily on her bed. "Well, he must be crazy if he thinks I'll show up."

**x-x-x**

Syaoran waved. Sakura looked to the direction he was waving at and saw a girl around their age walk towards them. As she came closer, Sakura was able to get a better view of her. The girl had long black hair and they were tied into two pigtails. She carried a large brown suitcase in her right hand. Her ruby eyes were gleaming with excitement.

"Syaoran!" The girl exclaimed, dropping her luggage and throwing her arms around him.

"It's nice to see you too, Meiling," He said and smiled.

After Meiling let go of Syaoran, she eyed Sakura suspiciously.

"Oh, what possessed me to come here?" Sakura thought to herself.

"Who's this?" Meiling asked.

"This is my girlfriend, Sakura." Syaoran smiled and put an arm around Sakura's shoulder.

"Stop telling everyone I'm your girlfriend! You're totally lying!" Sakura screamed in rage.

"She's shy," Syaoran laughed.

"Hi, Sakura! It's so nice to meet you!" Meiling said and hugged her. Sakura was surprised at this gesture and the thought of being angry at Syaoran completely left her mind.

The two girls chatted and giggled from time to time as they walked out of the airport. Syaoran slowly followed behind, making bored faces.

"Do you have anywhere to stay during your visit?" Sakura asked Meiling.

"Yup, I'm staying at Syaoran and Seichi's place," she replied.

"Nooo! You're staying over at my place!" Sakura whined and hugged Meiling's arm.

"Wow, those two became quick friends," Syaoran thought.

"Syaoran, do you mind if I stayed at Sakura's place instead?" Meiling asked.

"No, not at all."

"Yay! Okay, Sakura! I'm staying with you!"

"Awesome!" Sakura squealed and the two girls hugged. Syaoran rolled his eyes.

"But first, I have to see Seichi. I haven't seen him in ages!" Meiling smiled.

Sakura's happy expression disappeared.

"Um, sure," she said uncertainly.

Syaoran looked at Sakura from the corner of his eye, he was filled with concern.

* * *

**Author's Note: Hi everyone. :) That's all for this chapter! Thank you for the constructive criticism. I'm currently trying to improve the description skills and character traits. And another big thank you for all of you who reviewed! I love you guys. :D**

**You guys might think Seichi's stupid for giving up Sakura and all, but he has no choice. I feel really bad for him though. :(**

**I am very sleepy right now because I took lots of medicine before writing this chapter. I feel so sick right now and my throat is killing me. But I _had_ to write a chapter before Thanksgiving. :) Sorry if it was boring though. Not many events took place in this chapter.**

**Well anyways, I hope you guys all have a wonderful Thanksgiving. Happy early Turkey Day!**


	8. Chapter 8

"Greetings, Lady Meiling, it's very nice to see you again." The elderly man smiled.

"Hi Wei. It's nice to see you too," Meiling said, "Do you know where Seichi is?"

"Master Seichi is in his room. I'll let him know that you've arrived," Wei said and walked out of the room.

Meiling walked over to the green sofa and sat down. She patted the spot next to her. "Come sit with me, Sakura." Sakura did as she was told. Syaoran sat on a nearby chair.

Sakura examined the room with amazement, her emerald eyes shining with curiosity. The living room was huge. The walls were painted white and there was a large flat screen television in the middle of the room in front of the sofa she and Meiling were sitting on. Pictures of Syaoran and Seichi were hung upon the walls. There were also a few pictures of Syaoran and Seichi standing with four beautiful girls, a man and a woman.

"Must be a family portrait," Sakura thought.

There was also a large window with silky white curtains. Sitting on the windowsill were two vases of flowers, one on each side.

"So… how long have you two been going out?" Meiling asked.

"We're not-" But before Sakura finished her sentence, Seichi walked into the room.

"Seichi!" Meiling exclaimed as she dashed over to give him a big bear hug.

"Hi, Meiling," Seichi said and hugged her back.

He looked over at Sakura. She seemed shocked when he looked at her. And after a while, she gave him a small smile.

"She's as beautiful as always," Seichi thought as he smiled back at her.

**x-x-x**

After finishing the pizza they ordered, the two girls went up to Sakura's room and had some tea.

"Boy, I'm stuffed!" Meiling said and stretched her arms.

Sakura giggled. "So how long are you staying in Japan?"

Meiling said she wasn't sure.

The two girls got along very well, and learned that they had many things in common. Amongst other things, they both liked music and gymnastics, their favorite place was the amusement park, and they loved to eat strawberry jell-o. And Sakura also found out that Meiling used to be Seichi's fiancée!

"It sounds kind of crazy, but our parents wanted to keep the blood of the Li Clan within the family. So… we got engaged!" Meiling said and laughed.

"Did you love him?" Sakura asked with curiosity. After what happened today at Seichi's house, the pain she felt whenever she thought about him was slowly fading. Sakura had thought that it would be awkward between them, but for some reason, she smiled at him, and seeing him smile back at her made her feel all better. Yes, it was weird.

Meiling was quiet for a moment. She had that faraway look in her eyes, as if she was recalling a distant memory.

"Yes, I did love him," she paused, "He broke off the engagement a year ago. He told me that he found someone very special in Japan; someone that he loves."

Sakura felt a sudden sharp pain in her heart.

"There was nothing I could do. Seichi always looked at me like another sister. He always cared for me, and he said he loves me, just not in that way." Meiling continued, "That was enough for me."

"Aw, Meiling," was all Sakura could say. After a few more hours of talking, they went to bed.

"Goodnight, Meiling," Sakura said and turned off the light.

"Goodnight," she replied.

Sakura quickly fell asleep, but Meiling was wide-awake, thinking about the events that took place today.

_**-x-x- Flashback -x-x-**_

_Meiling wanted to talk to Seichi and catch up on the things that she'd missed while he was in Japan, so they went into his room._

"_So have you finally adjusted to life here in Japan?" Meiling asked with a smile._

"_Yeah, I guess. How have you been? You must have been really lonely in Hong Kong without me," Seichi said jokingly._

"_For your information, you're not the only friend I have!" Meiling said and hit Seichi's arm playfully._

"_So how's it going with that girl you like?" Meiling asked bluntly._

"_Blah, I don't want to talk about it," he said sadly._

"_Aw, Seichi, what happened? Tell me," she said. Meiling was probably one of the few people that really cared about Seichi. Ever since they were children, they played together, and they told each other secrets no one else knew. Meiling wasn't like everyone else; she didn't abandon him like they did. She truly cared for him, and she was the only one Seichi could confide in._

_He told her about Naomi, the picture, and Syaoran. But throughout his story, he did not mention that the girl he liked was Sakura; he only referred to her as 'she' and Meiling didn't feel the need to question him._

"_Oh my gosh! This is like one of those movies where two brothers like the same girl, but only one of them can have her! I'm so jealous! This girl has such an exciting life!" Meiling said in awe, her eyes shining with excitement._

"_Gee, thanks. I'm telling you about my tragic life and all you can do is go on about how much it's like a movie!" Seichi sighed._

"_Sorry," Meiling said sheepishly. "Don't worry, dear Seichi, I'll fix everything for you!" Meiling said as she stood up triumphantly, her eyes flaming up with determination._

_Seichi got scared and looked at her with wide eyes._

_**-x-x- End of Flashback -x-x-**_

"He said she was the most beautiful girl he's ever met. She had enchanting eyes and a wonderful smile. Above all that, she had a heart of gold," Meiling said softly, "I'm glad I was able to meet her today." And she surrendered to slumber.

* * *

**Author's Note: Sorry it took me so long to update! Life's been very hectic lately. :( I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. And as for questions why Seichi's parents acted the way they did and if Seichi was older, they'll be answered in future chapters.**

**I'm currently working on a fanfic for Christmas. It'll only be a few chapters long and the last chapter would be updated on Christmas Eve. But I have to finish the chapters before uploading them, so if I don't finish soon enough, no Christmas fanfic. Lol. Maybe next year.**


	9. Chapter 9

Sakura was rollerblading to school, admiring the beautiful scenery. A variety of orange, yellow and brown colored leaves fluttered about in the cool autumn breeze. The sun was shining at its best today, almost as if welcoming Sakura to a brand new day.

"I wonder where Meiling went," she thought to herself, "she didn't take her bags with her so I guess she'll come back." Skating around the corner, her school come into view. Shouji High School is a large building with beautiful surroundings. There were tall trees spread around the school, and cherry blossom petals were souring in the wind. To the left of the school was a fountain and there were also benches here and there. It was truly an amazing setting for a school.

"Good morning everyone!" Sakura greeted as she opened the door to her homeroom. Instead of hearing voices greet her back, she noticed that many of her friends were gathered in a circle chattering animatedly. Sakura made her way over to them, curious to find out what they're talking about.

"Meiling!" She yelled out surprised to see her newfound friend.

"Hi Sakura!" Meiling beamed. Everyone was surprised that the two knew each other. Meiling explained how she stayed at Sakura's house last night.

"Why are you here Meiling?" Sakura asked as she sat with Meiling and Tomoyo now that the crowd drifted back to their seats.

"There's some business I have to take care of," Meiling answered with an evil grin. Tomoyo questioned what she wanted to do but she wouldn't give out anymore information.

**x-x-x**

"Seichi, let's go somewhere fun after school today," Naomi hummed, leaning against a locker. Seichi was searching for his textbooks for his next class. He simply ignored her. "Seichi?" There was no response.

Naomi slammed the locker shut. "Seichi are you listening to me?" She asked in a malicious tone.

"No, not really," Seichi replied indifferently and opened his locker, only to have Naomi slam it shut once more.

"Listen, and listen well," She said, poking an index finger at his chest, "Remember that little deal we had? You cooperate or I'll show everyone the picture of you-know-who."

"Oh, you mean this picture?" Naomi turned around and stared at the girl in front of her, a horrified look on her face.

"Meiling? What are you doing here?" Seichi asked, a bit surprised. Meiling had her left hand on her hip and in her other hand was a photo.

"How'd you get that picture?" Naomi snapped.

"Oh, I have my ways," Meiling replied slyly, "Yeah, I've seen a similar picture like this in Tokyo Models Magazine except the girl was someone else. Hmm, looks like you have really nice photo editing skills."

"Shut up!" Naomi said and tried to snag the picture, but Meiling was too fast for her.

"I also have a picture I want to share with you," Meiling said and took out a picture of Naomi kissing one of the male teachers. This caused both Naomi and Seichi to gasp.

"Where the hell did you get that picture?" Naomi fumed.

"Oh, I have my ways," Meiling replied slyly and put her plan into action.

**x-x-x**

"And so I told her to stay away from Seichi or else I'd show everyone the picture!" Meiling laughed and took a sip of her lemonade.

"Aw, that was so sweet of Seichi. He was protecting you Sakura," Tomoyo said starry-eyed.

While Meiling and Tomoyo were busy talking about shopping, Sakura was daydreaming about Seichi. "He really did that for me? He never liked Naomi," she thought happily. Unknown to the three of them, Syaoran was sitting in the back of the café with a deep frown. He had heard their whole conversation.

**x-x-x**

_Did you ever love somebody so much that the earth moved?  
Did you ever love somebody even though it hurts you?  
Did you ever love somebody nothing else your heart could do?  
Did you ever love somebody who never knew?_

Meiling decided to sleep over at Tomoyo's house today. Tomoyo wanted to make a few pieces of attire for her. This gave Sakura time to be alone and think over the events that took place earlier that day. She was currently gazing through her window, observing the beautiful rays of the setting sun. A few days ago, her heart was broken into millions of tiny pieces because the one person she liked was with someone else. "He only did it to protect me," she thought happily. Everything turned out right in the end. "Now I have another chance to be with Seichi…" Her emerald eyes glistened and a small smile tugged at the edges of her lips. She sat by her window for a good half hour contemplating her feelings for Seichi. Her auburn hair was slightly swaying in the cool autumn breeze.

_Did you ever lay your head down on the shoulder of a good friend?  
And then have to look away somehow? Had to hide the way you felt for them?  
Have you ever prayed the day would come? You'd hear them say they feel it to.  
Did you ever love somebody who never knew?_

Seichi lied in bed with both hands under his head, staring up at his blue ceiling. Naomi had nothing on him now. He had a chance to be with Sakura. A smile made its way to his lips as he thought about the emerald-eyed girl and her happy-go-lucky attitude. The smile soon faded as an image of her and Syaoran flit through his mind. What can he do now? It seemed that his brother wanted her too. All his life he had been in the shadow of his younger brother Syaoran. Syaoran always had what he wanted; their parents spoiled him. But what about Seichi? Seichi never had what he wanted, not even the attention of his parents. Seichi may sound selfish and arrogant, complaining about 'what he wanted' and 'what he could never have', but he's not; it's totally understandable. Seichi remembered their tenth birthday. For his birthday, he wanted the latest action figure, and Syaoran wanted a puppy. Syaoran got his puppy. Instead of buying Seichi an action figure, his parents bought him a Harry Potter book. He was the heir to the prestigious Li Clan, and while Syaoran went out to play with his young friends, Seichi stayed at home and trained. He surely did not have a happy childhood.

"I'm not letting him win this time," Seichi said to himself, "I won't let him have Sakura."

_I did. You did. Well, you know I'd understand.  
I could. I would. More than anybody can.  
Did you ever love somebody so much that the earth moved?  
Did you ever love somebody even though it hurts you?  
Did you ever love somebody-nothing else your heart could do?_

While Seichi was making a new promise to himself, Syaoran sat in the backyard, deep in thought, and he had a troubled look on his face. "Will Sakura go running back to Seichi?" Syaoran thought. A little voice inside him said that he was jealous, but he decided to ignore it. "I'm not jealous," he said to himself. He then thought about the kiss they shared the day before. Although it wasn't one of the best kisses he had, it was different. And the feeling that he had when he was comforting her at the park… the feeling he had when he saw her cry – it was as if he wanted to bear her burden for her. He couldn't explain it, he never felt this way about anyone before. After sitting there for a few more minutes, he decided that he would take care of Sakura. He would make her his girlfriend and she would never have to cry over anybody ever again… Because he would protect her.

_Did you ever love somebody like I love you? Like I love you?  
Like I love you?_

Seichi's door flew open. "Don't you ever knock?" He asked, already knowing who it was.

"Mother wants us to go back to Hong Kong," there was a pause, "Uncle passed away." Seichi sat up and looked at Syaoran. It looked as if he was about to cry.

"Does Meiling know about this?" Syaoran shook his head.

* * *

**Author's note: It's probably been like half a year since I updated. Sorry! I felt really lazy and never got around to writing the next chapter and blah blah blah. There seemed to be too much dialog in this chapter… The story also seems to be going too fast, but I want to finish writing this as soon as possible. Enthusiasm level for this fanfic: -50.**

**Review and let me know what you thought about this chapter :D Oh yeah, the song I used for this chapter is called "Did You Ever Love Somebody" by Jessica Simpson.  
**


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